GOP passes higher ed anti-diversity, equity, inclusion bill through Kentucky House
The marquee Republican-backed bill limiting college practices of diversity, equity and inclusion passed the Kentucky House of Representatives Wednesday with the unanimous backing of GOP members.
House Bill 4, sponsored by Rep. Jennifer Decker, passed 81-18 following a long debate, featuring hard pushback from the majority of the chamber’s 20 Democrats.
The bill proposes defunding all DEI initiatives, including offices, policies, and practices “designed to implemented to promote or provide preferential treatment or benefits to individuals on the basis of religion, sex, color, or national origin.” It would not apply to the operations of an institution’s Equal Protection offices.
Decker, a Republican from Waddy, has touted the piece of legislation as “a bill that would ensure our post-secondary system in Kentucky is held accountable to dismantle the failed and misguided DEI bureaucracies that have made our colleges more divided, more expensive and less tolerant.”
A DEI office, according to the bill, is one that promotes “discriminatory concepts,” which are defined as “any concept that justifies or promotes differential treatment or benefits” to an individual based on the aforementioned traits — treatment Decker described during a Tuesday hearing as “unconstitutional.”
What’s considered DEI training under the bill “does not include academic courses or instruction,” she said during the hearing.
But the bill does bar “indoctrination,” including any course or training students or staff are required to participate in where “the primary purpose is to indoctrinate participants with a discriminatory concept.”
In addition to prohibiting universities from spending any money on these initiatives and requiring those institutions to close DEI offices and eliminate all related staff by June 30, it would also block universities from requiring students or staff to sign a diversity statement, attend a DEI training session, or complete an academic course “dedicated to the promotion of differential treatment or benefits conferred to individuals on the basis of religion, race, sex, color or national origin.”
A floor amendment from Decker accepted by the House removed a requirement that each public college and university provide the Personnel Cabinet and State Treasurer with the name, job title, duty station, and salary or wages of all employees each month.
The University of Kentucky dissolved its DEI-focused office and nixed certain training programs in August. No jobs were eliminated due to the changes, though.
The University of Louisville still has an Office of Institutional Equity.
Lawmakers on both sides of the aisle weighed in during a lengthy debate on the bill, with Decker on the defense. Her fellow Republicans backed her, while Democrats bemoaned many of the changes and what they saw as an overall anti-diversity aim of the bill.
Decker said the bill was necessary, but said the primary reason for it is to align the state with the Supreme Court of the United States’ 2023 decision to strike down Harvard University’s race-conscious admissions program. The nation’s high court said the program violated the Equal Protection Clause of the Constitution.
“The question of whether these practices hurt (or) help, are good (or) bad is really unrelated to the question at hand,” Decker said.
Central Kentucky Republicans Matt Lockett and Ryan Dotson — both of whom are reportedly mulling congressional bids should Lexington U.S. Rep. Andy Barr, go for Sen. Mitch McConnell’s seat in 2026 — rose to defend Decker.
“This bill puts everybody on the same playing field. That’s all it does,” Lockett said in a spirited floor speech.
Dotson rose to speak about two of his grandchildren who are mixed race.
“I have two grandchildren that are mixed,” Dotson said. “I don’t want them to grow up thinking they’re entitled to anything. I want them to grow up working hard and pushing forward, just as each and every one of us should do.
“That’s what being a nation is all about, is working together.”
Democrats took several stabs at amending the bill or stopping it altogether. All of those efforts fell short.
House Minority Whip Lindsey Burke, D-Lexington, called for a point of order, citing a rule that bars anyone from lobbying lawmakers during House proceedings. She said the caucus had evidence that Decker was texting a lobbyist who was providing her with information about the bill during debate.
She argued that the behavior violated House Rule 72, which bars anyone from lobbying a lawmaker while the House is in session.
The rule states that “no person shall engage in lobbying for or against any measure while the House is in session, or in recess, in any of the corridors or passages or in any of the rooms in that part of the Capitol or Capitol Annex assigned to the use of the House.”
Osborne rejected the point of order, pointing to the location-specific elements of the rule. That means the rule wouldn’t apply to text messages by his interpretation.
“It is obvious that none of those things occurred, so your point of order is not valid,” Osborne said.
